Let’s face it. Sometimes you can be doing all the right things when it comes to staying healthy as a leader, and you still have days you want to quit. Wanting to quit is a temptation every leader faces, but what do you do with that feeling?
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What do you do when you want to quit? How do you know whether you actually SHOULD stop doing something or not? What are some ways to deal with the reality of life and the fact that sometimes you deal with situations that lead you to want to quit?
In this next episode in our Wellness Series, Holly and I dig in and share real-life examples of when we’ve wanted to quit. We also break down three steps to take when you want to throw your hands in the air and walk away.
3 Steps to Take When You Want to Quit
Step #1: Evaluate
It’s important to honestly and factually assess what’s going on. Within the first step of evaluation, here are some questions to ask yourself and small steps to take:
- Ask yourself why you are feeling this way and remind yourself of the facts. What real-life circumstances that may be causing you to feel this way?
- Have a friend help you sift through the situation… are your emotions taking over? Get perspective from someone else. When I’m in this place, I need someone else to speak truth over me so that I don’t get sucked into my own head.
- Determine if there is too much on your plate. Have you committed to more than you can handle?
- Do you have your priorities straight doing what God asked you to do? Are you relying on God to provide you what you need each day?
- Have you been consistently spending time with God, or have you slacked off and ignored Him?
- Remind yourself of your life mission, vision for the future, your values, personality, and gifting.
- Check in and ask yourself if you are doing what God has called you to do.
2 Cor 4:1 “Therefore, since God in his mercy has given us this new way (or this ministry), we never give up.”
Step #2: Give up
Don’t quit, but give control over to God. Sometimes we must acknowledge that we cannot, in fact, do this on our own. Here are several small steps you can take to help you give up control to God:
- Stop trying to do all the things perfectly.
- Give yourself grace. Especially if the reality check you did earlier helped you to recognize some very real reasons you might be feeling this way. Perhaps you need to give yourself time or space to deal with those emotions.
- We need to get better at accepting that suffering is part of life. Hard stuff happens – grief happens – life is not perfect. It’s okay to be sad sometimes and it’s okay to feel like throwing in the towel.
- Give up being driven by emotions. Give yourself more regular reality checks. Trust someone to tell you what is real.
Step #3: Make a Plan
Making a plan helps you move forward. Here are questions to ask and small steps to take so you can formulate a plan that works for you:
- What can you actually quit? Will the world fall apart if you stop doing x, y, z?
- What priorities has God called you to? Hopefully, this realization will help you easily weed out the extra on your plate.
- Outsource/delegate the things you can’t quit but someone else could do them (housework, admin tasks, carpool)
- What habits need to change?
- Create a daily routine that fits your personality and real life.
Conclusion:
If you still feel like quitting, you might actually need to quit something (maybe). You may also benefit from speaking to a counselor. BUT, if you know this is what God has called you to, then don’t give up.
Other Episodes & Blog Posts Mentioned:
- What to Do When the Tears Keep Falling: 5 Ways to Cope as a Mom
- Motherhood: The Most Difficult Leadership Role
- Self Care for Moms of Intense Children: Why it Matters & What to Do About It
- Episode 8: The Key to Becoming a Better Leader
- Episode 10: Finding Your Purpose
- Episode 36 – Ditching Balance for Surrender
- Episode 45: Developing Confidence in Your Gifts + Managing Multiple Roles with Breshana Miller
- Episode 47: Moving from Shame to Freedom + Pursuing God-Shaped Dreams with Merritt Onsa
- Episode 48: Staying Healthy as a Leader Part 1
- Episode 50: Staying Healthy as a Leader Part 2
- Holly’s blog post: Lead with Your Scars
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